Filling device for bottle- and container-filling machines



4 Sheets-Sheet 1 R. KELLER ETAL Fig. I

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FILLING DEVICE FOR BOTTLE- AND CONTAINER-FILLING MACHINES Filed June 25, 1958 Aug. 7

Aug. 7, 1962 R. KELLER ETAL 3,048,206

FILLING DEVICE FOR BOTTLE- AND CONTAINER-FILLING MACHINES Filed June 25, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Hull-III Aug. 7, 1962 R. KELLER ETAL FILLING DEVICE FOR BOTTLE- AND CONTAINER-FILLING MACHINES Filed June 25, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Aug. 7, 1962 R. KELLER ETAL 3,048,206,

FILLING DEVICE FOR BOTTLE- AND CONTAINER-FILLING MACHINES Filed June 25, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Fig. 7

Fig. 8

Unite The invention relates to a filling device for bottleand container-filling machines and is concerned particularly with the construction and control of a centering means co-operating with the filling device.

For correctly locating the bottle at the filling device, a centering means is required. This centering means needs on lifting, a control which on a filling machine with long filling tubes takes place through these tubes. In certain embodiments, a control lever is arranged in addition with which the centering means is connected through an arm. With short filling tubes the centering means is provided in a known way with two eyelets through which project control levers arranged parallel to the filling tube. On these control levers the centering means slides upward and downward. This kind of control has the disadvantage that the movement of the centering means is opposed by frictional resistance. Thus it comes about that glass splinters or powdered glass from shattered bottles gets in the bearings, with a consequent grinding effect.

Additionally these glass splinters or powdered glass can fall into the bottles when these are at the filling tube.

Centering devices are also known with split or divided centering means which are mounted for single or double pivoting. These constructions are not useful for bottles with mechanical closures, because parts of these closures easily foul the centering means. 7

According to the invention, a closed and therefore not axially divided centering means is arranged on two parallel links pivoted on a column of the machine. In this way'all the sliding surfaces are efiectively enclosed so that no powdered glass from exploded bottles can reach the sliding surfaces and they therefore cannot be damaged. This is of special value when bottles of relatively low wall strength are filled under high pressure because the risk of formation of powdered glass by explosion of the bottles is then especially great.

The enclosed centering means is raised in a direct line by the two links and the bottles, which can have any kind of closure, are thereby securely held beneath the filling element.

The invention further relates to an especially advantageous construction of the connection of the parallel links with the centering means.

In a particular embodiment, the centering means reception ring on which the links are pivotally connected is provided with a type of bayonet connection with recesses for supporting the centering device.

In another embodiment the centering device reception ring is provided with a peripheral groove in the bore in which a spring ring is received, the centering means being equipped with a counter groove at its outer periphery.

It is further proposed to divide the centering means along a plane perpendicular to its axis and so to arrange the parts that the assembly when screwed together forms a dove-tail like groove for receiving and holding a sealing ring.

According to the invention, the centering means when lifted is provided with a sealing rubber the top of which being adapted to bear against the liquid outlet of the reservoir and the bottom of which being adapted to bear against the mouth of the bottle.

rates Patent ice It is also a feature of the invention that the liquid from the outlet of the control means of the reservoir emerges directly without a filling tube into the bottle whereby it is guided by a screen-like widening of the centrally arranged air tube to the bottle wall.

The construction of the sealing rubber the top of which bears against the liquid outlet of the filling element of the reservoir and the bottom of which bears against the bottle mouth has the eiiect of shortening the liquid path. The liquid can enter directly into the bottle without a filling tube and is so guided that it trickles along the bottle wall. Filling elements without filling tubes are known. The centering device according to the invention offers special advantages over these.

.Furtherimprovements and advantageous modifications of the invention will appear from the drawings, in which several embodiments of the invention are illustrated. They show:

FIGURE 1-a side view of the invention partly in section and partly in elevation;

FIGURE 2-a partly sectional view from above of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3a view in the direction of the arrows ab of a device similar to that shown in FIGURES 1-2 in which some parts are shown in section;

iFIGURE 4-a view from above of the centering means of the device of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5--a section along the line V-V of FIG- URE 4;

FIGURE 6--a view from above of the ring for supporting the centering means of FIGURES 3-5;

FIGURE 7-a longitudinal section through another form of the centering means with its carrying ring; and

FIGURE 8 is a view of a spring ring used in the embodiment of FIGURE 7.

In the embodiment shown in FIGURES 1-6, the centering means 1 is set in a ring 2 which has in cross-section somewhat the form of a rectangle standing on edge. This 1 ring 2 is suspended from two links 3, 4- which are hingedly seen-red on a machine support column 5 of a counterpressure filler which is not shown. This kind of counterpressure filler is known. It consists of a stationary base (not shown) which serves to support the column 5 for rotation about a vertical axis parallel to line 19 of FIG- URE 1. On this column 5 is secured a table (not shown) with bottle holders on which can be placed bottles which are to be filled with the liquid, especially beer. The support plates of the individual bottle holders on which the bottles are set are movable up and down in dependence on a control in the vertical direction.

Moreover, the rotatably drivable column 5' has a filling reservoir into which is conducted the liquid, for example the beer, with which the bottle is to be filled. This reservoir is under the pressure of a gas which in the case of beer can be considered to be carbon dioxide. The floor of the filling vessel or reservoir, which is connected with the rotatable column 5, is designated in FIGURE 1 by 18, while the side walls of the filling vessel or reservoir which are ring shaped with respect to the axis of rotation of the column 5 are designated by reference numerals 20 and 21. In the floor of the filling reservoir a plurality of openings 22 are provided for receiving the filling elements which are designated generally by 9.

The construction of the upper parts of these filling elements is of no concern. In particular, however, attention is drawn to the filling elements described in the prior patent application Serial No. 712,037. The filling element in the illustrative embodiment consists of a valveseat housing 23 which is secured to the underside of the filling reservoir floor 18 by means of screws (not shown). With the help of this valve-seat housing a spring retainer housing 24 is secured to the floor of the filling reservoir, so that this housing 24 projects through the opening 22. By means of a spring 25 of which the upper end is urged against a flange connected to the spindle of a fluid valve 14, this fluid valve will be lifted from the seat 27 of the valve-seat housing 23 in the event the pressures above and below this fluid valve 14 equalize. Within the fluid valve 14 a gas valve opening 28 is provided which can be closed by means of a gas-valve 13 adapted to bear on a valve seat 30. From the gas valve opening 28 a gas tube 16 leads into the interior of the bottle It). Moreover, the valve-seat housing 23 has an opening 31 which is controlled by a discharge valve 17.

The column is rotatably driven about a vertical axis 7 parallel to line 19 of FIGURE 1 with the filling reservoir. The fluid valve 14, the gas valve 13 and the discharge valve 17 are controlled from outside in any suitable way for example by means of fixed cam surfaces.

As soon as a bottle to be filled is shifted into a position beneath the filling element, the support plate of the bottle carrier with the bottle standing thereon is raised until the mouth-piece of the bottle is moved against the filling element, whereon filling can commence. This is all known so that the present informations serve only for explaining this known machine and does not need to be explained in the form of a drawing.

The links 3, 4 are fitted with hubs 6 by means of which the links 3 and 4 are rotatably mounted on bolts 7, which are further secured to a support 34 secured by means of screws 35 to the column 5. For receiving these bolts 7 the support 34 is provided with two vertically extending walls 36 (see FIGURE 3.). Between the walls 36 extends an abutment surface 37 against which can iabut an adjustment screw 8 which is screwed into a threaded bore in a lug 39 connected securely to the hub 6 which is associated for example with the link 4 of the two links 3, 4. The adjustment screw 8 is secured in its position for example by means of a nut. The lowest position of the centering means 1 is defined by the adjustment screw bearing against abutment surface 37. This position is adjustable.

The two links are provided at the ends opposite to the hubs 6 with offset pins 40, 41 which engage in corresponding holes 42, 43 provided in the ring 2 or in a lug 44 connected securely thereto. An ample clearance or tolerance is provided between pins 40, 41 and holes 42, 43. The centering means 1 is provided with an annular dovetail shaped recess 45 for receiving a sealing ring 11, for example of rubber, while the outer surface has an annular groove. Now, with reference to FIGURE 3 to 6, a bayonet type joint will be described for releasably connecting the carrying ring 2 with the centering means I. Also with respect to the embodiment shown in FIGURES l-2, the carrying ring 2 is detachably connected to the centering means 1 by means of a bayonet joint which differs only by immaterial details from that bayonet joint which will be described particularly with reference to FIGURES 3-6. Equal or similar parts of the embodiments shown in FIGURES 3-6 are provided with the same reference numbers as chosen for the embodiment shown in FIGURES 1-2.

The inner circumference of the centering means 1 is provided with a circumferential dove-tailed groove 45 which is adapted to receive a sealing ring 11 while the outer circumference of the centering means It is provided with a circumferential groove 46. The carrying ring 2 has two diametrically opposed lugs or brackets 47 while the upper wall of the groove 46 of the centering means 1 has diametrically opposed recesses 48, the peripheral length of these recesses being greater than the length of the lugs or brackets 47. Moreover, the centering means 1 in the region of each part not provided with recesses 48 has two short diametrically opposed recesses 49 which represent a lengthening of the groove 46 from above.

A stop finger 53 extending radially to about the depth of the lugs or brackets 47 is resiliently arranged on the 4 ring 2, for example by means of the bolt 50 and a spring band 52 provided with a hook 51.

In order to assemble the centering means 1 with the ring 2, the centering means 1 is turned so that its recesses 48 are axially aligned with the lugs or brackets 47 of the ring 2. At the same time the finger 53 is drawn back by means of the spring pressure of the band 52 whereby the centering means can now be moved axially into a position in which the lugs 47 lie at the level of the ringgroove 36. The centering means 1 is then turned through 90 with respect to the ring 2 so that the finger 53 engages one of the recesses 49.

On lifting the bottle it placed under the centering means 1 and the filling element 9, this engages under the centering means 1 and raises this in a direct line to the filling element 9. Consequently, the two links 3, 4 turn about their pivot points on the mounting including the bolts 7. The centering means 1 engages its sealing rubber it against a conical abutment 12 of the filling element 9 of its valve-seat housing 23, so that the bottle 10 presses against the sealing rubber 11 at the same time.

The filling process can now begin by the opening of the gas valve 13 of the filling element 9. The bottle 18 is put under pressure whereupon the fluid valve 14 is raised and the liquid streams out through the liquid outlet 15 of the filling element 9, until a lower opening (not shown) in the gas tube 16 inside the bottle 10 is reached. Thereafter gas valve 13 and fluid valve 14 will be closed under the influence of outside control means not shown. The air in the neck of the bottle it) can then discharge through the discharge valve 17, which is controlled from outside', and the bottle 10 is withdrawn whereby the centering means 1 moves back into its lower position.

In FIGURES 7 and 8, a further embodiment of the centering means is shown. The control of this centering means coincides with that of the illustrative embodiments according to FIGURES 1-6, so that the holes 42, 43 of the embodiment of FIGURES 1-6 are provided also in that according to FIGURES 7-8. In the embodiment according to FIGURES 78, a centering means reception ring 26 is provided which on its inner periphery has a deep milled or turned groove 29 which serves for receiving a snap ring 32 which is illustrated fully in FIGURE 8. The snap ring 32 consists of spring steel having a diameter d which equals to the axial height of groove 29. The distance between the ends of the ring 32 in a dismounted, expanded condition equals likewise to d. The centering means consists here of an upper part 33 and a lower part 54 which parts are connected together by means of a thread 55. The form between them a dove-tail shaped groove 56 which corresponds to the groove 45 in the embodiment according to FIGURES 1-6 and serves for receiving the sealing ring 57, for example of rubber or like material. The insertion of the sealing ring 57 is facilitated by the construction of the centering means out of two parts 33 and 54.

The upper part 33 of the centering means is provided at its outer periphery with an annular groove 38 such that in the assembled state the snap ring 32 lies in this groove, so that its middle lies about in the space between the inner periphery of the holding ring 26 and the outer periphery of the upper part 33.

After the two parts 33 and 54 have been assembled, enclosing the sealing ring 57, the assembly of this centering means 3354 with the outer ring 26 follows in that the snap ring 32 is inserted into the groove 29, and the ring 26 with the snap ring 32 are then moved from above Additional means for preventing rotation of the centering means are therefore not necessary.

What we claim is:

l. A device for filling bottle-like receptacles with liquid fluid from a vessel having in combination, a valve structure connected to said vessel and having a controlled outlet opening, a circumferentially closed centering member adapted to be reciprocated with respect to said outlet opening for centering a filling mouth of said receptacle with respect to said outlet opening, a ring member encompassing said centering member, connecting means for detachably connecting said ring member to said centering member, guiding means for guiding said centering member during the reciprocating movement thereof including two pairs of parallel arm members, means for pivotally supporting the one ends of said pairs of arm members on diametrically opposite sides of said ring member, and means for pivotally supporting the other ends of said pairs of arm members adjacent said valve structure the pivot point of the arm members on a common side of said centering member being arranged to form a parallelogram linkage.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1, in which said connecting means including a boyonet joint and a releasable sealing member for holding said ring member and said centering member in the engaged position of said bayonet joint.

3. A device as claimed in claim 1, in which said connecting means including a resiliently expanding ring-like element, said ring member and said centering member having circumferential grooves being adapted to receive said ring-like element.

4. A device as claimed in claim 1, in which said centering member being provided with a sealing ring made of rubber or rubber-like material and having two sealing surfaces angularly disposed one with respect to another, one of said sealing surfaces being adapted to bear against said outlet opening and the other of said sealing surfaces being adapted to bear against said receptacle mouth.

5. A device as claimed in claim 1 comprising a sealing ring made of rubber or rubber-like material and having two sealing surfaces angularly disposed one with respect to another, said centering member comprising a first ring member and a second ring member threadedly connected one with another for clamping said sealing ring therebetween, one of said sealing surfaces being adapted to bear against said outlet opening and the other of said sealing surfaces being adapted to bear against said receptacle mouth.

6. A device for filling bottle-like receptacles with a liquid from a vessel comprising, in combination, a valve structure connected to the vessel having an outlet opening having an axis, an annular centering member having an axis and movably mounted with respect to said outlet opening for receiving and centering a filling mouth of a receptacle with respect to said outlet opening, means movably mounting said centering member including a pair of rigid link members of equal length each having first and second ends and parallel end portions, means pivotally mounting said first ends to support means, said first ends being spaced apart a fixed distance and related such that a line interconnecting the pivot axes of said iirst ends within the plane of the associated end portions is parallel to said outlet opening axis, said second link ends being pivotally attached to said centering member and having axes spaced apart a distance such that a line within the plane of the associated end portions interconnecting said second end pivot axes will be equal to said fixed distance and parallel to the axis of said centering member whereby said centering member is supported upon a parallelogram linkage and the centering member axis maintains a parallel relationship to the outlet opening axis throughout the movement of said centering member.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 569,376 Gordon Oct. 13, 1896 807,507 Sellenscheidt Dec. 9, 1905 813,340 Wood Feb. 20, 1906 909,868 Champ Jan. 19, 1909 933,518 Zeller Sept. 8, 1909 1,710,623 Johnson Apr. 23, 1929 1,730,381 Pennock Oct. 8, 1929 

